the tree

release your breath and close your eyes
let your thoughts trail into silence
forget all fears, dry burning tears
and forgive remembered violence

can you feel the cool caress
of the fresh breeze on your cheek
its complex scent a subtle hint
of what we truly seek

with shuttered eyes envision
the primeval garden plot
the peace within before the sin
the bitter fruit has brought

Imagine there was no Adam
and no reviled Eve
no good and evil knowledge
hanging from a tree

pretend that no snake dangled
to tempt from twisted limb
with whispered lies the truth disguised
to separate God from men

what would our world look like
if they'd never pierced the skin
seeking forbidden secrets
but finding death within

would we still find reasons
to hate our fellow man
for empty pride our light has died
and kept us from Canaan

how foolishly we separate
each from one another
black and white to death we fight
forgetting that we're brothers

can you imagine a world
where living came without a price
and Jesus never had to make
such a brutal sacrifice

picture that grace-filled garden
full of promised delights
I'll meet you there, my heart to share
I'll meet you there tonight

and we'll walk through the flowers
awestruck by all we see
but when I see God I'll have to ask
why'd you ever plant that tree?